Before the Week Begins: A 10 Minute Mental Health Check In for Sunday Nights

For many adults, Sunday night feels heavier than any other part of the weekend. Your mind starts replaying last week, fast forwarding into the next, and quietly asking, “Will I keep up this time?” That rising “Sunday anxiety” is a form of anticipatory anxiety. Your brain is trying to prepare for everything at once, which can be especially intense if you live with anxiety, ADHD, burnout, or decision fatigue.

A simple way to interrupt this spiral is a brief check in with your nervous system, not only with your calendar. Instead of writing a long to do list, you give yourself 10 minutes to notice what you feel, what you need, and what you want to carry into Monday.

Your 10 Minute Sunday Check In

You can use a notebook, a notes app, or a voice memo. Keep it light and practical.

1. Ground your body (1 to 2 minutes)
   Sit comfortably with both feet on the floor. Look around the room and name a few things you can see and hear. Take three slow breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth. This tells your nervous system that you are here in the present, not trapped in next week.

2. Ask three questions (6 to 7 minutes)
   Write a few words or short sentences for each:

   • What drained me last week?

   • What grounded me last week?

   • What is one small thing I want to repeat or protect this week?

   Drains may include back to back meetings, late night scrolling, or saying yes when you were already overloaded. Grounding moments might be a short walk, a supportive text exchange, a quiet commute, or taking medication on time. Choose one realistic change, such as leaving a 10 minute buffer between meetings or putting your phone away at a set time.

3. Close with a small somatic reset (1 to 2 minutes)
   Choose one quick practice:

   • Box breathing: in for four, hold for four, out for four, hold for four, four cycles.

   • Shoulder rolls: lift shoulders toward your ears, then roll them back and down ten times.

   • Grounded feet: press your feet gently into the floor and notice the support under you while you take three slow breaths.

This is not a full life audit. It is a weekly touchpoint that helps you enter Monday oriented, not overwhelmed.

How Therapy and Coaching Can Help

If Sunday dread feels like a pattern you cannot shake, you do not have to handle it alone. Therapy can help you explore how anxiety, depression, trauma, or perfectionism shape the way you experience the start of each week. ADHD and executive function coaching can help you turn this check in into realistic plans, routines, and supports that match how your brain works.

At Palm Atlantic Behavioral Health, our therapists and coaches meet with adults virtually throughout Florida. We specialize in anxiety, mood concerns, trauma related issues, and ADHD informed coaching that focuses on real life tools and structure.

You deserve a Sunday that resets you instead of draining you.
You can learn more or schedule a virtual session at www.palmatlanticbh.com.